Savage Police believe dog wasn't abducted or tortured

SAVAGE, Minn. - The injuries suffered by a family's pet pit bull terrier were not the work of an abductor, according to the Savage Police Department.

And, investigators say, the dog's wounds were not the result of torture, as originally reported by a Twin Cities animal rescue shelter, but most likely inflicted by a car.

The dog, a four-year-old male named Cesar, made headlines across the Twin Cities Thursday after the Midwestern Animal Shelter & Services (MARS) put out an alert in social media, seeking help paying the dog's medical bills.

"They (the owners) probably believed the dog was taken and tortured, but the evidence doesn't support that," Capt. Dave Muelken told KARE.

A police report made availableto the Twin Cities media details a conversation investigators had with Dr. Heather Douglas, of the Douglas Animal Hospital in Osseo, where Cesar ultimately was treated Wednesday.

The doctor's narration, quoted in the police report, included, "Lung, musculoskelatal and degloving most consistent with trauma from being hit by a car, and/or dragging. Lung changes are consistent with trauma, suspect hit by a car."

The veterinarian also told police the x-rays also revealed a piece of gravel, which was removed from Cesar at the hospital.

Cesar was originally at the Green Veterinary Clinic, which is affiliated with MARS, before heading to the animal hospital. The Douglas Animal Hospital treated Cesar on behalf of MARS, which has used Cesar in the past to help other pit bulls calm down around strangers.

An entry on the MARS Facebook page Thursday offered the theory that Cesar had been harmed intentionally because he's a pit bull, noting that the family's other two dogs weren't harmed.

Original news reports

The owner of the dog, Robert Cole, told KARE that his fiancé, Amber Wade, called him in panic Wednesday to tell him that Cesar, and their black Labrador, Shelby, had vanished from their back yard in Savage.

Her first hint came when their third dog, a Chihuahua mix named Gracie, began to howl and jump against the back patio door. Amber told KARE she looked out a front window to see Cesar and Shelby in the driveway.

Cesar was bleeding profusely from his hind legs. Amber said shed opened the garage door, and Cesar ran to the far corner and sat down. A trail of bloody paw prints still mark the garage floor.

Cole, a professional dog behavior trainer, came home and carefully approached Cesar, and discovered what appeared to be stab wounds to his hind legs. Someone had written, "Back off Bob" in green magic marker on Cesar's back.

It appeared to Cole that the gate had been pushed open, and a wooden block designed to keep the smaller dog from escaping had been dislodged from the gate and knocked several feet away, Cole said.

Given that set of facts Cole decided an abduction and attack was the only plausible explanation. The staff at Midwest Animal Rescue and Service, or M.A.R.S., in Brooklyn Park agreed with that theory, after seeing no signs of injuries from a car.

MARS issued a statement on its website and Facebook Thursday seeking help with Cesar's medical bill, and described the incident as an abduction and torture. The Twin Cities news media, including KARE, ran with that story.

Savage Police response

Savage Police said on Friday that while the investigation is ongoing, the physical evidence shows that the injuries were not consistent with Cesar being beaten or stabbed.

Savage Police also found witnesses who saw the two dogs, Cesar and Shelby, running free in the neighborhood. One neighbor actually tried to catch up with the dogs in a vehicle, but lost their trail, according to animal control officers.

That led police to believe the dogs had forced their way through the back yard gate, rather than being deliberately taken by someone intent on harming them.

As for the writing on Cesar's back? Captain Muelken said that remains the one unexplained piece of the puzzle.

"If it concludes that he was hit by a car I'm all for it," Cesar's owner Robert Cole told KARE. "I'd love to hear that because I that means I don't have to worry about my family being threatened by somebody trying to get to me."

But he still asserts, with all due respect to the Savage Police, that Cesar's injuries don't fit that scenario.

"If he was struck by a car he'd be pretty messed up all over his body, not just his legs and hips," Cole said.

"And how do you explain the markings? Someone's going to hit him with a car, mark him up, and then drop him off back here?"

MARS response the police

MARS, the animal rescue, also maintained Friday that the injuries suffered by Cesar were not consistent with a car accident. Their veterinarian from the Green Veterinary Clinic disagreed with the car accident theory for several reasons:

Cesar had no broken bones

Cesar had no road rash

His lacerations contained no road debris

His lacerations appeared more "clean" cut versus the jagged wounds more typical of being struck by a car

The graffiti on Cesar's back is unexplained.

MARS officials also said that all donations were made through PayPal, so if this is proven to be something other than what was previously thought, anyone who wants a refund will be able to get one.

Robert Cole recently started his own dog behavior business, using the name The Dog Whisperer of Minnesota. Prior to that he worked for a company known as Your Dog's Best Friend, which carries the slogan "The Dog Whisperer of Minnesota" on its website.

According to police report, detectives questioned both Cole and the owner of Your Dog's Best Friend, Max Bitterman, to see if they had any idea who wrote the message on the dog's back.

(Copyright 2012 by KARE. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)